


shiver (we're a saturated sky)

by amako



Series: ShikaSakuWeek Hanami 2018 [4]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Declarations Of Love, F/M, Friendship, Japanese Culture, Platonic Relationships, Team Feels, Traditional Marriage Proposal, Truth Spells, more like truth jutsu but whatever
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-04-14 16:08:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14139615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amako/pseuds/amako
Summary: “What's your favourite colour?”She giggles, looking a bit frenzied maybe. “Orange. The rusty one.”





	shiver (we're a saturated sky)

**Author's Note:**

> Day Four: Truth/Lies
> 
> Traditional Japanese proposals are subtle. You don't say "will you marry me?". You ask if they'll lie in the same grave as you after death.

Team 7 comes back from the mission with frowning faces and grumbled curses. Everyone stays away from them, because when Naruto looks as grumpy as Sasuke and Sakura on a bad day, you make yourself scarce. Even Sai, who you can usually count on to not look like someone killed his cat, is distinctively disgruntled.

Because Team 10 has no survival instinct whatsoever, Ino suggests they hang out with Team 7 to figure out what went wrong. And because both Shikamaru and Chōji are whipped, they agree. Under the false excuse of meeting up for lunch, they go to Ichiraku where they're sure to find their friends in their post-mission ritual. Instead of debriefing and enjoying the food, like always, they're all silent at the table, eyes on their bowl and very intently avoiding each others' eyes.

When they notice Ino, they all tense up, looking suddenly panicked. Sasuke is muttering something in Sakura's ear, and Naruto is elbowing Sai who looks up to him with a pained expression.

 

“Hello, losers!” Ino smiles, pushing Sai so she can seat next to him. With a sigh, Shikamaru and Chōji find a place at the table too.

“Hi, Ino,” Naruto says in a morose tone.

“What crawled up your butt and died? You all look like Kakashi forbid you from petting his dogs or something.”

“We were hit by a truth jutsu,” Sasuke says through gritted teeth, like he's trying his damnedest not to answer.

Ino blinks. “You're kidding me.”

 

Sai shakes his head, silent. Ino narrows her eyes and even Shikamaru looks interested. Chōji looks cautious, like he knows they shouldn't be pushing it. Ino apparently didn't get the memo, though.

 

“So like, you can't lie? At all?”

“No, we can't,” Naruto sighs.

“Do you know how long it's going to last?”

“No idea. We went to see Baa-chan and she told us that we're forbidden from leaving the village, for safety reasons.”

“Yeah, no kidding,” Shikamaru snorts. “You're candy for the other villages right now.”

 

Naruto wordlessly nods. Sakura is looking at her ramen bowl like it's personally offending her. Ino sees it and grins like a shark.

 

“Soooo, Forehead-”

“Ino, shut up. Seriously.”

“She's right, you know,” Chōji says. “I can't imagine being in their position. We can't take advantage of that, it's a complete breach of trust.”

“Come on! Just innocent questions!” Ino whines.

“Nothing is innocent with you, woman,” Shikamaru grumbles.

“Just one, real quick. Do you still love Sasuke?”

“Not cool, Ino,” Chōji says softly.

 

Naruto's eyes widen and he looks at Sakura like she's a ticking timebomb. Sai tries to discretely hide behind Ino. Sasuke is staring at Sakura, silent and serious, his hand clenching on the table.

 

“Of course I love him. I've dreamed about getting him back for years, I punched God in the face just so we could all be back together. He's about one fourth of my soul and I can't imagine my life without him by my side.”

 

She falls silent. Her face is crimson and she's looking down at her ramen, shoulders hunched. Sasuke stares. Then he stares some more. Finally, he moves, his hand reaching for Sakura's neck. He tugs her towards him and kisses her forehead softly. He doesn't speak.

 

“Riiight, Ino, you're done here, come on,” Chōji says as he tugs his best friend along despite her protests.

 

Shikamaru follows, but he can't quite keep his mind off what just happened. He feels like a creep, but he wants to ask questions, too. He wants to know if Naruto really believes in his dream, if Sai really doesn't know what feelings are like, if Sasuke realizes how deeply he hurt his team when he left. He wants to know if Sakura can sleep now, if she can handle crowds again.

He follows, though, and reminds himself that those are his friends and he owes them respect. Sakura is pressed against Sasuke's side, Sai's arm around her waist while Naruto toys with Sasuke's growing hair. He has no place ruining that with his questions.

 

As it is, it's Sakura who finds him.

It's mid-afternoon and he's dozing on top of Kakashi's carved head. The clouds are fairly uninteresting today, because summer is closing in and the sky is a spotless blue. The warmth is manageable though, and he enjoys the quiet he can only find on the Hokage Mountain.

He feels her chakra as she climbs the rocks until she's sitting down next to him. He doesn't move, lets the atmosphere shift, because he realizes how huge this is, how much she's trusting him. Her voice is soft when she speaks, without looking at him.

 

“I want to tell you things, but I'm a coward. So if you have questions, ask them. You know I'll answer.”

“You're anything but a coward, Sakura. Cowards don't fight gods.”

She shifts. “I don't feel brave.”

 

His fingers drum on his stomach as he looks at the clear sky. She shifts again.

 

“One fourth of your soul, you said. Does Kakashi matter this much to you?”

“Kakashi is a child in an adult body with no sense of responsibility and the educational skill of an oyster. I'm fond of him, but Sai is the one I was talking about.”

He snorts in laughter. “I'm glad for him. The man deserves some love and Team 7 should be pictured next to 'unhealthy amount of love to give' in the dictionary.”

 

Sakura laughs, a relieved note in her voice.

 

Shikamaru looks at her, arms crossed behind his head. “Where do you see yourself in ten years?”

She wrinkles her nose. “Dead.”

He blinks in surprise. “Really? Why?”

“I applied for ANBU. They don't have any medics and I know they need one. Black Ops aren't expected to live past thirty.”

 

He doesn't answer. He loathes the idea, because he believes she's too soft for this. He doesn't say it, though. He's not in her head, and there are a lot of things she's not telling him. He can't help but think back to the chūnin exam and the trick she pulled on Ino.

 

“How did you beat Ino at the preliminaries?”

She shakes her head. “It was a draw. I didn't beat her.”

“How did you shake off the possession, then?”

“I have a second personality. She hangs back until I need her, and she can take control of my body if I'm about to pass out. She kicked Ino out when she got too close.”

 

He stares at her in disbelief. That can't be true. Split minds like hers happen because of trauma and there's nothing in her life that could have caused-

 

“What happened?”

“I'm sorry?”

He sits up, his eyes looking intently at her paling face. “What was so bad that you had to create a second personality to help you manage it?”

“My dad died when I was little. After that, my mom went a bit crazy, I think. Started beating me up when she felt like it. One day she broke a bottle of sake on my head. When I woke up, Inner was yelling at me to go to the hospital. She never left.”

 

Sakura is shaking, likely disgusted by the ridiculously small amount of control she has on her voice right now. Shikamaru closes his eyes with a pained expression, feeling guilty for asking. Damn his curiosity.

 

“Ask something else,” she breaths, eyes open wide. He fights for something to say before blurting out: “What's your favourite colour?”

She giggles, looking a bit frenzied maybe. “Orange. The rusty one.”

 

The tension bled out of the air and she's looking more relaxed. Shikamaru feels slightly less like a dick. They stay silent for a while as he looks at her. Her short hair is blowing everywhere with the wind, likely tickling her face if her grimaces are to be trusted. The second seal on her forehead is a glaring reminder that she's strong, so strong, and getting stronger.

Something hot is building up in his throat and he has difficulty breathing. She's shifting uncomfortably, a hand in her chest binder, likely replacing her breasts where they're hurting her less. He's seen Ino do it countless times and he always feels bad for them for the added pain. They've all learned a long time ago that body image and privacy were things of the past.

He can't stop himself, and he finds that he doesn't want to. He reaches out, his hand tugging at a strand of her hair. She looks at him with hooded eyes, and that answers his question about her sleep.

 

“Ask me a question, Shikamaru”, she whispers.

He plays with the lock of hair. “Will you watch clouds with me everyday?”

 

She freezes. Shikamaru doesn't look at her, doesn't dare cross her eyes. She's shaking. Then, finally:

 

“Yes.”

 


End file.
